Berger+Parkkinen

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Science Center, Wolfsburg / Germany, 2000

"The head is round, so that the thoughts can change their direction"
(Louis Aragon)

The Science Center has a special situation in the row of the cultural buildings of Wolfsburg. It becomes a link between the town and the ‘Autostadt’

The site is determined by vectors of movement from the town, the railway and the new connecting bridge. The Science Center raises in the focus of these movements. The lower part of the SC reacts to the structure and scale of the surrounding town. Clearly cut volumes create a central square. Cut wedge-shaped spaces lead from the public space to the ‘square of science’.

The exhibition-spaces are developed over the square in four free suspended platforms. The undulating movement of the facade is created by the interplay of all levels. The free flow of the space awakes the impression of limitless, a hint to the unlimited field for science and research.

The space opens up successively while walking through. The transparency can be experienced 3 dimensional. The bend transforms the element of boundary to an element of movement. The position and the course of the overlapping levels create a pulse in the space. This pulse becomes the engine for the movement and the curiosity of the visitors. The visitor has at every point various possibilities to continue his way to other phenomena.

There is no possibility to overlook the whole building from one point. A new horizon is always hiding additional ‘Neuland’. Simultaneously the transparency of the space draws the attention to the things hiding ‘behind the horizon’. The central access to all levels makes orientation easy and direct.

The simple and clear architecture combined with the big scale of the elements gives the exhibition-design a great freedom. The generous space in the ceilings makes a system of plug and play possible. 6 massive shafts, organized as pairs, form the vertical structure of the building. These shafts serve as the constructive frame and distributor for all services to the exhibition-levels.

The massive base of the building is a concrete construction. A clinker wall is placed in front of the outer walls. The exhibition-park is organized on the roofs. The path through this park connects the railway station to the VW ‘Autostadt’.

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